The Rhinos have played amateur teams 13 times in the U.S. Open Cup and 10 times those matches have been decided by a goal. They played with fire again on Tuesday night, but didn't get burned.

Johnny Mendoza's free kick in front of goal was redirected in by a leaping Colin Rolfe in the 119th minute, as Rochester escaped with a 2-1 win over Reading (Pa.) United at Sahlen's Stadium. The victory earned the Rhinos a June 17 matchup in the fourth round with defending Cup champion and their old nemesis, D.C. United. Rochester is 0-4 all-time against D.C.

"I'm grateful we're moving on," Rhinos coach Bob Lilley said before adding some of what he shared with his team about what he considered a poor effort against Reading, an amateur team from the Premier Development League. "We have to dig deeper. The last couple games I'd characterize our play as timid, soft — we're not in people's faces. There's no urgency."

Rochester also needed OT two weeks ago to edge Western Mass, another PDL club, 2-1 in OT. Against Reading, the Rhinos played a man up the final 21 minutes of OT after a red card to Darius Madison.

Neither team connected the dots often in the first half, but each had one chance that nearly went in. Rhinos rookie goalkeeper John McCarthy made a good reaction save on Nick Surkamp's 16-yard shot after the forward slipped behind the defense in the 12th minute.

The Rhinos came out after halftime with more pep. They created more opportunities in the first 12 minutes after intermission than they did in the entire first half. But Reading burst on top in the 66th minute when North Carolina State University forward Surkamp beat McCarthy, a former player for Reading, with a 16-yard shot on a one-on-one look.

Suddenly awake, the Rhinos took the ensuing kick and tied it in 15 seconds. Forward Alex Dixon grounded a pass in front, where Mendoza scored on a sliding shot near the six-yard line. "They scored. That's when you have to pick up your head and go forward. You can't put your head down," said Mendoza, who played for USL PRO champion Orlando last year. "It was a great touch by Dixon, taking the guy on."

On the winning goal, the free kick was the result of Rhinos forward Levi Houapeu being fouled just outside the box right of goal. Rolfe looked gassed late in regulation, but found enough in the tank to connect with Mendoza's pass. They said they made eye contact just before it.

"I was going to put it in on the ground. We looked at each other and there was no one in the space there," Mendoza said.

Rolfe said he just got a piece of the ball with his leg, as Rochester survived. "It was a dogfight," Mendoza said. "We were fortunate."